Super Mario Brothers 4: The Batista Twins
by The Count of Counts
Summary: The Story of Mike and Belle/ The Story of Count Nightmare Valentino/ The Story of Count and Ran, a fated meeting.
1. Chapter 1

SUPER MARIO BROS. 4

_Chapter 1, The Fate of a Princess_

The wind blew gently over the blue colored grass in the fields of the land. The star's lights kissed the horizon with gentlest of light. The field stretched for miles and miles before it came to a wooden signs hammered into the ground and kept up via wooden stake. Standing at this stake and sign was a strange man. The wind pushed his hair gently; the grass' blue color matching the light blue color of his own hair, the wind couldn't differentiate between the two by looks alone. The man began to walk forward, a cape blowing behind him, dancing in the wind as he made his way towards a brick in the ground. As his feet touched the ground, it was seen that more bricks were to follow until it became a brick road. The man looked up through bright red eyes and saw a large gate and a brick wall going around in either direction, forming some sort of simple barrier. The man looked back to the sign. Upon it was the sentence: "Welcome To The Starlight Kingdom"

"So… I have arrived… I can only hope I am not too late. "

The man walked through the gate, his feet pressing softly despite the large black and silver boots he wore. They were as tough as armor and looked just as heavy. As they rhythmically clicked against the floor, he could see that the first few yards of this place were nothing but grassy floor and brick road. Yards after that, however, were glowing with life from the markets. Around him, now, were dozens of shops, stores, and bazaars. He walked through the lightly crowded streets quietly, his cape no long being held by the wind. Instead, his cape was closed, hiding his figure perfectly. Women would glance up and stare at the strange man, while men seemed to snicker. They were looking to the large goggles upon his head, and the bandanna that wrapped around him instead of over his head. But what distracted them the most was the stripe of black paint going from one ear to the other so that his eyes, and some of his nose was painted.

"Hey, friend! Welcome! Have you a look at my wares!? We have many things!"

"No, no, strange one! Come here! I am having many wares in mine store!"

"Wait, Sugar! Why not take ya'll time with sweet lil' ol' me? I'm sure we can find something to fit that cute lil ol' head o' yaw's!"

The shop keepers, unlike the citizens around him, were interested in this bizarre stranger. They called to him, wanting him to come and spend his money with them. The man refused politely bowing to each after. He bore such manners, not a soul in the shopping district knew how to react but to return the bow. The man then entered the living district. It was a bit poor looking, but there were crews around, paint buckets and tools scattered around; no doubt they were reconstructing the area. The man passed by quietly, seeing children at play and adults with work clothes or sitting down at the eateries with breakfast dishes before them. The man took note of this, looking around slowly and calmly.

"Breakfast… So it is true… This is the land spoken of in the prophecy."

His voice was purely internal, making little to no noise outwardly. He walked onwards until he reached the Upper District of the kingdom. Here was where the wealth lived. They were well guarded it seemed, having several knights around, pacing the streets and glaring at the man as he walked through. The nobles huffed at him or looked down on him from their mounts. Horses, Birdos or Yoshis. They all seemed disgusted with him, aside from a young woman who seemed rather interested in this young man. He passed through with no true interactions, and was now before a huge silvery white gate. It's size was obscene, easily passing the twenty foot mark. The man slowly pushed them open, and walked in. There, several knights and guards stood. They approached him slowly, their white armor glistening in the starlight.

"What business have you here?"

"I am here to request a meeting."

"A meeting? What meeting could you possibly need? Listen you! This is Castle Twilight, home of our Princess. Who do you think you are, barging in here and asking for a meeting, as though you were a noble?"

"This is of urgent business, concerning the safety of the kingdom and of my dear friend, Princess Starlette D'Tierre."

"Wh-what..? You rat! How dare you! Do you think threats will work here!?"

"This is no threat. I came to warn her. Please, you must let me see her!"

"A warning… Well, at least share your name stranger."

"My name is Nightmare Valentino."

"N-N-Nightmare… Valentino…? As in The man who found that Count Bleck fella and studied his artes? The man who rescued our former queen from the raid on Princess Daisy's castle that time, two years ago?"

"Yes. I am The Count, Night."

"Forgive me, sir Count. I... I had no idea. Please, come inside. The princess is up on the balcony. We shall escort her to the throne room for you to speak with her!"

The man, Nightmare, nodded and bowed. Two knights escorted him inside. As they approached the doors, he could fully see the castle's form. It was massive, built from shining white and silver bricks that flashed every so often, giving it an almost moving appearance. They entered to large doors, adorned with gold trimmings and small gems shaped like stars. He was brought into a large room with a red carpet leading to a very decorative throne. He knelt down here, and sighed quietly. After a few minutes he could hear the click of heels. He looked up and saw a young woman. Her long red hair curled down, stopping past her hips, and her eyes were large and vibrant. They closed slowly and opened again, having changed color. With every soft blink they seemed to become a different color of the rainbow. She was offered to sit upon her throne but refused. She walked down the stairs that lead from the ground to her thrown slowly, holding her dress as she did.

"Count! It is so g-good to see you a-again."

"Hello princess. I see you are still as innocent and sweet as ever. It is good to see that taking the throne hasn't changed you too much. I must say, you are much more comfortable talking to me, a male, here today."

"Oh Count," she gushed and covered herself to hide her blush. "Y-You are e-embarrassing m-me!"

"My apologies Princess. However, I am afraid I bear terrible news."

"S-So I have h-heard… What t-troubles you o-old f-friend?"

"My Silver Prognosticus… It reads that this land is in danger. A terrible being shall arrive with an army. Their ghostly might shall wreak havoc upon the kingdom…"

"Gh-Ghosts …"

"Indeed… But there is hope. The Prognosticus states; They shall come. Of brunette and carrot hair. They will bring light to ghosts and suffering to evil spirits."

"H-Heroes… Once, when the v-villainous B-Bowser attacked, The S-Super Mario B-Brothers came to my rescue. B-But-"

"They shall not arrive I fear… These two are twins too; Of Earth, they will arrive. A brother and sister. Fear not their might, as they will honor their duty."

"I s-see. Count… P-Please… Will you help m-me?"

"I will do all that I can, Princess. First thing is first. We must find these fated two. They must be here and ready for when the great evil arrives."

"Yes. Th-then let us p-prepare. We c-can study in my l-library."

The two stood a while now, face to face. The Count, Nightmare, seemed to hold so much emotion in his eyes. While his face was blank, his eyes seemed to say all he needed to. She sighed as she felt his worry, his pity, and his fear. It was all so powerful. She began to lead him now to the halls of the castle, first going to the main hall where the others would branch from. She led him through rights and lefts and small pauses in the grand castle until they reached a pair of massive doors. The Count was led inside, and was amazed at the sights he saw. Book cases, as far back as they could see.

"Come C-Count. We've much s-studying to do."

Time passed. Hours and hours, it almost felt as days, but when night fell, they knew to rest. Days did come to pass, but not a week came before their fruits of labor came to be. The Count closed a book before him, and looked across the massive table of the grand library, where Princess Starlette sat, reading a book, two others stacked next to her. They had read books of prophecy, books of how to cross dimensions if for a limited time, and books to ward off evil spirits. The princess sighed heavily as she closed her book and noticed The Count's glance.

"We've r-read through every book w-we could f-find on travel…."

"Then you know what you must do, correct?"

"Y-Yes. I will travel to their w-world and search for th-them, while you remain here. But C-Count… Can you really hold th-them off? The spirits are such horridly strong creatures…"

"Their King, he is powerful and wields magic I could never dream of. But the same goes for me. I will do all in my power. I promise. But if all goes as planned, you'll be ready far before they arrive."

"Thank you Count… A-Alright then… L-Let us go… These p-people… This k-kingdom. Th-They are relying on m-me… I c-can't fail them…"

And thus they left the library, their missions clear to them. But what would come of The Count's prediction? Would these ghastly invaders come? Or would this all be for naught? The princess and the Count had to first alert all the guards. There was much refusal at first, but The Count made a simple plea: That if she did not do it, their Kingdom and their Princess would be crushed in the hands of the king of spirits. With a heavy heart, they allowed the princess to leave, feeling somewhat safe with The Count present, the guard still prayed for a safe return for their princess…


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter 2, It's a me---_

New York City. Financial capital of the world. The grandest city of them all, some have even called it "The World's Capital." Slowly, the grand city began to shrink, falling into the horizon. It faded away, making room for grass and tree of the open road. The grass swayed and danced and dust danced now as a set of wheels rolled along the each, both part of the amazing article of transportation known as a bike, and atop this bike? Atop this bike was a young man, dressed in cargo pants with seven pockets and new age black sneakers. The bike rolled along quickly as this young man pedaled down the road, moving at a fast pace, or at least as fast as he could manage.

"Bro, are you sure you wanna do this? I mean, leaving the city… To go to a farm… Of all places, a farm?" A females voice rang out, airy and scratchy, and with the wind it was also slightly broken.

"Yeah, course I am sis. This is the opportunity of a life time!" The voice came from the biking male in response. He was talking into the little black cell phone stuck to his bike with a case, welded to the bike. It was a genius move by Mike, though the entire bike appeared to be custom made.

"I'm just sayin, bro… All those fine girls…"

"Hey, look… I know what I need. I'll start here… I'm only twenty one, ya know? Once I get through a weeks or like two months, I'll move on. I'll learn from life, maybe learn from love. Everything school couldn't teach me."

"You've been watching that anime haven't you?"

"Maybe… Anyway, sis, thanks again for meeting me there. Uncle Charlie is so excited to have us both there at the farm… This means just as much to him as it does me you know."

Michael Batista, age twenty one, graduate of Pace University of New York NY, and a self proclaimed student of life. Mike smiled as he repeated these words in his head, and as air headed as it may seem, it held purpose. All of it was true. At a fresh twenty one years old Michael graduated from Pace University. Soon after getting a degree in psychology, he accepted the offer to go to study for his Masters Degree but left school after only a few months in grad school. Mike, an avid fan of the anime, "Golden Boy" found that his life needed spice and thus set out to learn and love using his high level of informational intake and his adaptability to most situations.

"Don't worry about it Mikey. Just remember, this is temporary. I need to get ready for my theatre debut in a few months."

"Oh, that's right! You were going to take a role in that play about the Italian struggle, right? Wow, Belle, you're going to be a star!"

"Ha-ha, don't get my ego up just yet. I only got the part cause the other girl decided to quit. I'm not a star. Not yet."

Belinda Batista, Mike's twin sister. Much like Mike, Belle was a prodigy. She learned quicker than most professors could teach and her adaptability lead her to become an aspiring actress. After landing a part as a waitress in a play, luck played a part giving her the lead role, and further, the play was given an extra two months due to the theatre it was supposed to take place in. Hearing about her brother's decision, she decided to see him off, and spend some time with him while she still could.

"Hey, how are you getting here anyway?"

"By my bike, of course!"

"By your… Are you crazy!? It'll take you hours to get here, if not a good day!"

"Never worry sis. It's all in my plan. This will help keep me in tip top shape!"

"Mike… You're an idiot…"

To Belle's prediction, Mike took exactly twenty two hours on bike to get to the farm from New York. Had it been none stop, it would have taken less time, but there was no humanly way he could have accomplished that. Mike arrived hungry and tired, but full of pride and of self respect. He biked to the front gate of the farm and smiled as he slowly climbed off his bike. The wooden fence, though called the gate, was low enough to hop over but the tired biker simply let himself in, and walked down the long path that kissed the front door of his Uncles home.

Mike knocked a few times and smiled tiredly as he heard foot steps. The door opened to reveal his youngest cousin. A short lad, standing a mere four feet despite being thirteen. He gave the boy a tight hug and smiled, seeing his two other cousins sitting on the living room sofa. After that long trip, he was finally home, or at least, this was home for now. Belle was no where to be seen however, so it came as a shock when Mike walked in, that she would hug him and nearly knock him off his feet.

There was a long talk at the dinner table that evening. At the dinner table. Mike had arrived twenty two hours after leaving New York at eight in the morning. He arrived at a little after six, and was given the chance to rest before they started with him about his trip, and the biking, and of course the work he would be doing on the farm.

"This ain't gon' be like that city work cuz. Y'know the farm life is tough." Each of his cousin's spoke with a southern accent. The youngest just had the thickest.

"Yeah, so I heard. But you know, I'm here to learn and to help, not to become a master farmer."

"Mike's right. This is just the first stop. He's still gotta live every episode of Golden Boy first."

"Shut up Belle!" Mike narrowed his eyes at his sister who only giggled.

"Hey… Where's Uncle Charlie at anyway?" Mike said as took a forkful of fried ham into his mouth.

"He done said he was wit some kin we ain't never met before." His middle cousin, and the only female of the three, said as she stared at Mike for a moment. "Hey, how come you don't never visit no more? I miss playing dolly with you."

"Cause of school and stuff. But aren't you a little old for dolls, Vee? I mean, you are seventeen."

"Shucks, nah! I still got my Barbie dolls upstairs."

The was silence however, when the door slammed closed. Every set of eyes wandered to the five foot three man who entered, his long white hair down to his hips, a stubby black beard covered up his chin. The fifty year old man was as confusing to make out as the northern lights of the artic. Was he really a young guy? Was he an old man? And why did he always wear over alls and that plaid button up anyway?

"Well! 'Bout time you showed up there Mikey! I thought ya'll would get lost, city boy!"

"Yeah, well, I biked over here Mr. Busted-Pick-Up-Truck. Of course it took me forever to get here."

"Fair enough. Anyway, we can start tomorrow. Lil Belly there says you got guts. I'mma see that for myself you lil smart mouth."

That night came slowly with talks and jokes. Mike and Belle talked about their parents, and how their father and Charlie always had sibling rivalry. The night came to a close as Mike fell asleep on the sofa. Not wanting to wake him, they let him sleep. Uncle Charlie knew that the following day would push Michael to the limit, and unbeknownst to Belle, it would push her as well to a new limit as well. The night sky filled with stars that night, and the wind blew calmly over the green blades of grass. The oddest thing of the night was, some of those green blades seemed dark, not because they were dying, but because they were becoming blue blades instead.

The first week was harsh, to say the least, on Mike. He learned to rise at four and sleep at ten, and trained his body to go only on the meals he was given. Day by day, he pushed himself farther than any of his family expected. Belle, not wanting her bother to feel completely out of synch, helped him with his chores, starting from eight until seven at night. Day by day, however, Mike noticed that the grass became bluer and bluer. He decided it was just him getting used to the scenery and ignored it however…

"Hey Belle… You're up early." Mike whispered as he stood at the front door of the barn.

"Yeah… I dunno why but… I just had to get up… I figured I may as well hang with you. This is my last day here after all.. I wanna spend it with my twin brother."

"Thanks sis. That means a lot, you know?" Mike smiled at his twin and chuckled a bit. "Hey… Why not come with me to the sheep? You never had the chance to see or pet any of them, have you."

"Ooh… I do love sheep…. But is it okay…? I mean will uncle Charlie mind?"

"You let me handle out uncle. Just trust me." Mike chuckled light heartedly.

The doors of the barn slowly opened up, and Mike pulled off the lock hanging on only the left side of the barn door, having unlocked it before Belle arrived. The sheep were scattered about, some laying half asleep in the five AM brisk breeze. The gave bah cries and started to shyly move around as the barn door closed behind Belle. She smiled and held in a cute squeal as she saw the sheep start to walk around her, especially a baby lamb off in the corner with it's mother. Mike had walked over to the stacks of hay and sheets that was in the barn, and started pulling the sheets up, they were stained from the birth of the baby lamb a week or so before Mike arrived to work on the farm. Belle sat herself on a box meanwhile, to pet and play with the sheep brave enough to approach her.

A little while passed before both Mike and belle saw something strange. In the back was an odd little sheep. It looked back of wool, which was very odd as far as they knew. The twins looked to each other, then the sheep. They took small steps forward before getting on their knees and calling the lonely sheep over. Slowly it approached them, and their eyes grew wide… It was not black, not completely. Her wool was purple like, and decorating her wool were designs like red swirls, or sparkles… It was like looking into another galaxy completely. The twins were shocked for sure, but both put out their hands to try and pet the shy creature.

The sheep slowly licked their hands in response. The twins smiled and laughed a bit as she sheep came closer and without warning it jumped onto Mike, and kissed him again. Belle fell over onto her rear and laughed at her poor brother, but their laughing started to fade away as a bright light engulfed their vision. The twins looked up, not seeing their strange sheep, but instead a woman. Long red hair with elegant curls, a dress with the same design as the sheep's wool, and eyes that change color with every blink. Mike rolled backwards on the floor and scurried to his sister's side as she too crawled away. Both rose from the ground and stared at the woman, their hearts racing.

"I-I'm sorry… I l-let my joy get the best of me…" She was stuttering terribly as she spoke.

"… Who are you…? And what the hell just happened there!?" Belle asked, trying to piece everything she just saw together.

"F-Forgive me…" The woman's voice was as smooth as silk, soft and quiet. "My Name is Starlette… I come from the Starlight Kingdom… M-My kingdom is in danger… And Sir Mario can't be called upon… I came here in s-search of the twins of The Count's prophecy."

Mike looked at his sister and scoffed. "Count huh… Well listen Princess, I'm sorry, but your twins are in another castle." Mike said, only then noticing he was dressed in a red shirt and over alls. He sighed and turned so his side was to the woman.

"Look, lady… How do you expect us to believe that…? And even if it was true, how can you be sure we're the right twins? I mean, Mike has no life, he's played every game to ever come out with the words 'Super Mario' plastered on it but…" Belle poked her fingers together lightly.

"I…I… I don't…" The woman struggled to answer Belle. Both women were blushing however.

There was a moment of silence before Mike sighed. He rose his hand, ready to speak again, but as he opened his mouth, the ground began to shake. There was loud noise to boot, like ground breaking and glass shattering. Mike and Belle jumped, both running to the woman to help keep her on her feet. The twins gave each other a look, surprised at their actions, then to the woman. The barn door fell over with a slam, pulling all three of them away, all of them shocked to see what or rather, who, knocked down the door. A rather large, muscular being stood there, stepping in followed by smaller beings. Mike glared coldly at them, until he could see their finer details. They were turtles, all of them. Shelled beings, some with hammers, other with wings. The big one stared at them, two sledge hammers, one in either hand, explained his they broke the door down so easily.

"Attention! Presentin' her royal highness! Princess Wendy O. Koopa!" The large hammer brother spoke loudly and stepped back. From the doorway, a slender figure approached. Once out of the blaring light of the sun, Mike recognized the figure as Wendy O. Koopa, though she was certainly older than the games made her appear.

"Very good Tibarn. Now then, Princess Starlette! Daddy has been looking ALL over for you. He says you and he go back, and he'd like to finish what he started with you." Wendy smirked as she finished.

"Hey, lizard breath!" Mike said moving away from the girls suddenly. "I don't know who you think you are, Wendy, but you and Gigantor the big, big Moron there have no right breaking down my Uncle's barn." Mike frowned.

"Mike… Mike, what are you doing….?" Belle asked quietly.

"Oh, a tough guy?" Wendy said with a sick smile. She reached into her shell and grabbed her scepter from within the darkness of it.

"Michael! Here!" Princess Starlette opened her hand, and formed a red flower, a tulip, out of thin air. She tossed it to Mike quickly.

Mike caught the flower and stared at it for a moment. The flower slowly turned and started to stare back. Mike's eyes grew wide as he realized what he was holding. The flower blinked and seemed to almost grow happy as it faded away and his clothes changes to red over alls and a white shirt. Mike could feel a power swell inside of him, a burning fire, raging within his heart. He slowly brought his hand up, he was dominantly left handed, so his right hand hung by his side calmly. It started as a flicker at first, a blue light radiating from his hands and slowly it built up into a fire ball about the size of a base ball, glowing blue, as the cobalt flames danced in his hand. Mike's eyes were flaring along with the fire as he smiled.

"Tough guy? Nah. More like… Hot stuff, baby!" Mike pulled back and launched the fire ball, aiming at Tibarn, the muscle bound sledge bro.

Contact! The fire ball hit Tibarn, and set him on fire right on contact, but instead of phasing out, the fire ball broke into two and bounced onto Wendy as well, setting her bow on fire! The two turtles fell to the floor, rolling and screaming to put the fire out. Now was their chance! Mike turned to the girls, only to see Belle slapping a koopa onto the floor, her body covered with a deep black shell, a hammer in her right hand. It appeared Starlette had brought a power up for each of them, and it was a good thing too.

"C'mon! Let's get out of here!" Mike shouted over the screaming koopas.

"Gee, no Mike, let's stay and play some more." Belle spoke with sarcasm clear in her tone as she walked over the fallen koopa.

The trio raced to the door and skid outside, well except the princess due to her heels. They could see the koopas and goombas fall to the ground just a bit away. Mike and Belle followed the trail or beaten monsters until they saw their uncle stomping on the enemies, with their cousins using furniture to hit the monsters either into submission or until they didn't move anymore. The twins and their princess stopped just a few feet away. They were going to explain what was going on, but their uncle seemed to take the lead.

"Starry! You found them! Good!" Charlie seemed to be okay, though a little worn.

"Yes, Sir Charles!" She stuttered terribly to him… It appeared as though the male figure caused her a great deal of fear or worry.

"Alright then, hurry! Get to the kingdom! Don't worry about these shell heads. They're already callin a retreat without that girly koopa's permission. These cowards'll be gone faster than a jack rabbit with a date."

"But Uncle Charlie… Can you really handle them…?" Mike asked, clearly worried.

"Don't worry about me, boy! Get this young lady and your sister out of here!" It appeared his southern accent was gone.

"Yeah, don't worry, we got this!" As was his Vee's.

"Alright… Be careful! We'll see you al again someday, so just survive… promise me." Belle understood the situation must easier than Mike. She took the princess by her hand and looked around.

"We will, don't worry. Now head into the house. There's a warp pipe there that will take you back to the princess's kingdom." Charlie spoke with a small grin. "And kids… I'm so proud of you. Both of you.."

Mike and Belle looked to each other and nodded. They were filled with pride on hearing their uncles words, and right now the adrenaline and the pride was masking any uncertainty they had, and their confusion and fear were shadowed at least for now. They ran to the door and turned, just in time at that, back to their uncle. Wendy and Tibarn were on their feet and they were stomping mad. Mike and Belle watched as Tibarn grabbed Uncle Charlie and planted him, back first, into the ground with so much force, he actually made a small crater and managed to get a loud scream and painful crack from the man as a result. The twins grew furious at the site. They took a step forward but were stopped be Starlette. She put her hands into a prayer position which both confused and warmed their hearts. As they assumed she prayed for them, they hadn't noticed the small glow from her hands. They quickly looked over their shoulders, Mike and belle, to see what else was going on. To their dismay, the koopas were surrounding their cousins now. They took a step, but stopped when they heard a light moan. Starlette was leaning against the house now, red with blush; she held her hand up weakly and smiled as a pair of small, smiling stars bounced away from her and onto the twins. Her hand slowly fell, and rested against the building now; her hand had traced a pattern, the exact pattern the two stars took. They landed on Mike and Belle and suddenly everything went black. Mike and Belle shook for a second, and their eyes went from shut tight to wide open. Their bodies were glowing, shining, flashing, with sparks of raw energy following their every movement. Star Power…

Mike took off in a full dash. His eyes were burning with fury once again. "Argh! I'll rip your shells open!" He shouted as he leapt up, higher than any human could have ever hoped to leap.

"I'll rip your heads off!" Belle was standing there, rage filling her eyes. She took off after her brother, running for all she was worth.

The twins skidded just a few feet from their targets and gave a loud shout. Their cousin's watched, their eyes sparkling as their kin came to their rescue. Mike ran to Tibarn, and jumped up; in mid air he gave a spin, then another, and came down onto Tibarn. Like a ton of ton of steel pipes, his feet crashed onto the sledge brother's helmet, cracking it open, and leaving his head exposed to the remaining force of mike's attack. The koopa fell to the floor, instantly unconscious. Belle, meanwhile had Wendy by an arm and was punching the back of her head with a half open fist. She hit her over and again, even though Wendy had given up on the third strike, there were a dozen more after. They felt a sudden jolt however, and watched as the energy left their body, in a visible rainbow wind. Mike ran to their cousin's as Belle hurried to grab Starlette. The remaining enemies all stood in a panic for a few seconds. As the twins rushed to their targets, the remaining soldiers ran to grab Tibarn and Wendy. They dragged them off as quickly as possible.

Mike and Belle slowly walked to their cousin's with Star in belle's arms and their uncle in Mike's. Belle was smiling, as was Mike. Both of their passengers were alive, knocked out, but alive. They set Uncle Charlie in their cousin, Lam, arms. There was a silence for a while as they stared down for a moment. It was then Lam spoke.

"Guys… I know this is confusing now… But… Hurry to the Princess's castle… Once you get there, you'll meet a man… That man is your family… A distant relative of Aunt Clara… Your mother."

"None of this makes sense… I-" Mike looked to belle as she cut him off.

"What about the rest of the creatures here?" Her voice was shaky.

"They ran away… No doubt back to their world… They were after the princess… I doubt they'll be back here any time soon." Lam sighed. "Mike.. Belle… Our family isn't like other families… We're special."

"Gee, thanks for explaining that. I guess the living video game characters and the fact we just used a set of Starman wasn't enough." Mike said, half joking half serious.

"Mike… Belle… Go, hurry up…" Vee said, looking to her cousins.

The twins nodded and walked to the house. They waved to their cousins as they began to hurry and clean the place, while Lam hurried inside to tend to his father. Mike and Belle walked into the living room where a large green tube was poking out of the ground. Slowly they approached the shining metal mystery, their eyes full of wonder and amazement. They bother slowly pushed the princess onto its wide edge and climbed onto it as well. Both holding onto the princess they slid in. They had no idea what would happen nor what any of these events meant… But they knew they were doing the right thing by following along as they were told.


	3. Chapter 3

_Chapter 3, The Princess and the Monster…_

The stars shined beautifully in the night sky, the few clouds seen were solid clouds, traveling off on their next sight seeing trip. The wind began to blow over the land, southward towards the back of the castle. Mike was standing in the grassy blue fields known as The Playground that rested behind the castle. It was used for training the guards and now had become the most common place to find Mie and Belle. Mike stared at the night sky and sighed lightly.

"Be reasonable Your Highness! It has been a week! Those two so called heroes are free loaders!" Came a deep, heavy voice. It held a bit of a soft touch even through the bass.

"Mmn…"

"Princess… " The voice came again. The voice was met with a figure. Massive in both height an width, the figure was clearly a giant among men. The figure stepped into the starlight along with the princess.

"How can you be so quick to judge them…? In a week, both Michael and Belinda have learned to use weapons our soldiers could only ever dream of learning." Star spoke clearly, not a single stutter.

"So they can use items… So what? So can the turtle things." The figure made herself known now. Despite the burly muscles, and solid facial expression, the figure was actually a woman. Of course the only reason one would know that is because of the obscenely large breasts that were close to falling out of her top.

"Stop it! Lilly, they saved me from Bowser once already! I know they're the heroes Count spoke of… He even said that they resemble the images that came to him from his prognosticus. Lilly! You can't tell me I've failed…I… I can't fail my kingdom…" Star held up a delicate, gloved hand to her eyes, and wiped away the forming tears.

"No, princess, no! I do not doubt you! Not at all! It is them I… I am sorry princess… I should have more faith. If you selected them, then they must be the rightful heroes!"

Lilly, the massive woman, hugged princess Starlette tightly. Since the day Starlette was old enough to walk and talk on her own, Lilly had been the one to take care of her. She knew Starlette well, and since she was but fifteen years older than the princess, the two had come to grow very close. Starlette saw her like a second mother or aunt like figure. The two turned slowly as they heard a click on the marble floor of the castle. Standing there, in her Pjs and slightly saddened, was Belle.

"Princess… You have so much to lose… But you stand by us so closely… I-"

"Belle!? I, uhm…" Star stuttered out. Her cheeks burned as she blushed a deep red, her eyes flashing from blue to red, yellow, orange, and several other hot colors much faster than normal.

"Miss Belinda. You mustn't just sneak up on the princess like that! And where are your manners!? Those are pajamas!" Lilly let go of the princess and turned her attention to Belle.

"It's five in the morning, and your outside my room." Belle answered flatly.

"Uh, erm…. Yes… You're right…" Lilly sighed. Belle had a point. "But still."

Mike looked up from where he stood, sighing. He was in new, fresh clothes. A black shirt and denim overalls, meant to be a copy of Mario and Luigi's outfits. However, when offered a cap, Mike refused, letting his long brown hair set him apart from the Mario and Wario bros. Mike looked to his new get up, especially the fingerless white gloves. They were originally solid, white, cotton gloves, but Mike wanted to set himself apart again. He knew why he was there… But he wasn't going to be an exact carbon copy of them now, was we? With a soft smile Mike turned about, seeing the three women above him on the balcony they had chosen to stand on. He waved to them, and pulled the attention from their awkward moment onto himself.

"Heya ladies." Mike said with his smile unable to fade.

"Hello, and good morning master Michael." Lilly waved down, along with Star.

"Su'p bro." Belle chuckled. How Mike was up and out so early was amazing to her. "Heh… He's still a wanna be farm boy…"

As the group was getting into the morning rituals, Mike was noticing a lack in guards. The girls would take to their morning routine, and Lilly to her chores and business, and yet no guards ever seemed to be present . Mike walked around the ground floor of the castle as the girls finished getting changed and ready, and saw only seventeen guards, seven of which were off duty. Mike walked into the dining room and sat down, waiting alone a while until Belle and Star joined him.

"Good morning Mike. I'm sorry you had to see us girls in out nighties." Belle said with a laugh.

"Yes. Good morning dear Mike." Star stuttered out.

"Morning sis, Princess…"

"Is… Something wrong Mike?" Belle tilted her head slightly.

"Yeah… Princess, how many guards are normally active in the morning?"

Star thought a moment. "There are thirty-seven. fifteen outside and the rest inside, while other off duty knights remain in their rooms at the ready. The morning is the least defended, due to our time being so different from the rest of the world's."

"There were only ten inside, seven off duty, and none of the guards were outside. I think we have a problem."

"Wait… What? That means we're almost one fourth of the normal protection! Dude…." Belle looked around.

"O-Oh my…." Starlette looked around them as well.

"Don't worry, Princess. We're still here." Mike comforted her as best he could.

The trio were still, however, on edge. The chef was still there, still having the workers serve the three their breakfast. And they could hear the servants and the hired help moving around, and talking as though nothing were wrong. Mike looked to his plate of scrambled eggs and then up at the girls. Something was off here, he could feel it, see it. Why was this so familiar? Why did he remember something so similar, so clearly. He replayed the events over and over, and while it became clearer, he would return with more questions than answers. He took a look around once again, and saw something he hadn't see before. The servants and the chef, or five of them at least, were all funny looking. They had a silver glow, and their eyes were always strangely discolored. Red and pink, yellow and gold, black and silver… On top of it, they were all wearing red and gray. Like they were all dolls from the same machine or something.

"It's like Yar…Do…" Mike started his sentence off just as the thought came, "Yardovich! Of course!" Mike said though he tried to be as quiet as possible, remaining at about a whisper.

"Huh…?" Both Star and Belle looked to Mike. "Yar….Do….Vich…?" Star repeated slowly.

"Belle… Take the princess and get her to the guards, fast. Tell them to get to a safe room and lock up. If I'm right, there's gonna be one hell of a fight up in here." Mike's voice was unusually shaky.

"But… I can't leave you alone! You could get-"

"Forget me. I've seen enough Mario to know how to handle this. Worry about Star. We're here to protect her, not me." Mike stood up and walked with them to the hall.

They walked out of the dining room slowly, mostly casual. Once they were out, Mike whispered for them to run. Belle took Star's hand and began to run down the hall. They gathered up every guard they could find, all of them a little skeptic of the situation, and had the men take them to the library, the most protected room in the castle. Belle and Star were sweating now, both covered in fear and worry.

"Now, what's this all about, earth-girl?" A knight glared at Belle from his helmet.

"Haven't you noticed!? Almost all the other guards are gone!" Belle was now shouting. She was stressed, and her voice was cracking a bit. "And while you stand around doin' nothing, my twin bro is out there, getting ready to take on the reason!"

"W-What!? The others… I thought the princess told them to take the day off!?"

"I made no such decision!" Star whispered from behind Belle, though loud enough and excited enough to have it audible.

The group began to argue and rant on. Had Star told them to rest? Why were the guards all gone? They were trying to figure things out until they heard a loud BANG. They looked to the door of the library, or rather the grand doors, and all tensed up. Then another bang. Belle moved past the group slowly and placed her hand on the door. Those sounds…. No doubt the fighting hadn't begun yet. It must have been…

"I…I'm confused…." Starlette spoke out softly. "What's…. What in the name of the star spirits is going on….?" Belle had never experienced this before… There was Bowser's attack a while back, but it was over before Bowser could get into the castle…

"Princess… A while ago there was this adventure Mario had. Long story short, one of the strangest enemies he fought from the gang he was against is here. That's what Mike was mumbling about. This guy, he's a shape shifter. He must have disguised himself as you and got rid of your guards I'm guessing. Now he wants you gone so he can take the castle and the kingdom." Belle was sharp. She picked up on what her brother did, albeit a little slower. But the guards and princess were shaken.

Meanwhile, Mike was sitting at the table, watching the servants who were all watching him. He stood slowly and started taking a few steps forward. One, two, three, and on the fourth step he took off in a dash. He charged one of the male servants first. Wrapping his arms around the waist of his target, Mike pulled him upwards, and on bending over backwards he used the momentum to slam the servant's neck and head into the ground in the hardest German Suplex he could manage. He let the servant go and rolled over, getting to his feet again.

"Agh! You blasted inferior being! How dare you!" The servant growled out.

"You just saw how I dare. You ready to see how I double dare…? Yardovich!?" Mike smirked proudly.

"What!? Agh! I was found out so soon!?" The servants all shouted now, this time in unison.

Mike watched as they all ran at each other, all the oddly dressed and colored servants moving so uniformly and swiftly. It was impressive to say the least. They began to move in circles and melted into a silvery puddle; the puddle's center rose up high and solidified itself. It took form slowly into the familiar narrow frame of Yardovich, standing easily at 9 feet or so. It was massive, almost one and a half times as tall as Mike, and its eyes gave a red glow.

"I don't know who you are…. Or how you figured me out… But I'm going to make sure you can never tell another soul, you wretched little human."

"Your no easy target to spot out… But I found your pattern thanks to some prior knowledge."

"Clever, human." Yardovich slowly shifted his pose and formed a spear in his hand. "I'll remember to watch my patterns after I hang you to the wall like an ornament. You, and that Allura servant girl who called me out as well. She was lucky to slip away earlier… Little wretch."

The young man growled. "Hey, hey. She's a servant girl, leave her out of this. I'm the one who plans to run your face through the dirt." Mike had seen the fight, played the fight and won the fight as an RPG… But now, it was real life. Mike knew what his first move was going to be all the while hoping to spot the girl he mentioned, Allura, and make sure Yardovich never had a chance to get to her. That definitely wasn't gonna be in his favor, but what choice did he have?

Yardovich started the dance with a circling of his opponent, but Mike met each step with one of his own. While Yardovich's long legs let him step farther, he was considerably slow. Michael could have circled him at lest twice over if he skipped, or more if he were to run. Yardovich had had enough of this dancing though, and swung his spear diagonally at Mike. Mike skipped back and smirked at the creature before him as he watched the spear clank off the tile of the dining room floor. Mike took his chance, now that Yardovich was recovering from the shock, to run in and jump up onto Yardovich's head. Mike landed with a hard stomp, but what caused Yardovich true pain was the kick off that landed Mike behind him.

"You'll have to do better than that if you're gonna make an ornament outta me." Mike spun on a heel and rested his weight back again, just as Yardovich spun around to face him.

"Cocky little human! This fight has only just begun!"

He was right, the battle was only beginning. Mike couldn't treat this like a video game. Just because this was his first fight here, didn't mean it would be a walk in the park. Mike took a serious stance now, fists up, and eyes locked on his opponent. Mike ran at sardonic and skipped up, swinging his leg around and landed a hard kick on Yardovich's face. The metal monster growled, but it didn't look much affected. They met in two more clashes after, one off of a kick and a swipe from the spear that met mid way, Mike's foot keeping the spear away by hitting the base; the second off of a scratch and a punch that had put Mike in a bad position. Yardovich had his fist trapped and Mike wasn't strong enough to pull free. Yardovich rose the spear wielding arm now, the weapons tip pointing at Mike's wide open side.

"It seems this is where your game ends! I'll see you in the Underwhere!"

"Ergh..! You… Need a breath mint…" Mike said as he struggled to free himself from Yardovich's grip.

Mike watched as the spear hand began to spin rapidly, making the spear into a buzz saw now. Not seeing much choice, Mike gave another tug at Yardovich's grip, succeeding only in that he managed to pull away a few inches, but the grip on his fist never let up and instead the monster's arm was forced forward. Mike gulped, seeing the beast only become angrier. As Yardovich swung the buzz saw spear, he could see sparks flying instead of human blood. He looked forward in utter shock, he was cutting right through his own arm!? As a last second maneuver, Mike had given Yardovich another tug, and pulled his arm outward again! The arm was cut clean off and the metal monstrosity could only stare as Mike pulled the dead hand off of his fist.

"Impossible!"

"Says you. Now come on! Let's finish this!" Mike said, glaring at Yardovich with a new found conviction.

Mike ran at the beast and skipped up a bit. His foot came down on the beasts chest in a hard stomp, but as the other foot came down, Mike was sent into the air. He began to spin around and came down again onto the head of Yardovich. The metallic monster roared in pain, dropping his spear to the ground. Mike was sent up again from the force of the stomp and came down one last time, this time on the back of Yardovich. Mike pushed off and sent Yardovich rolling forward. The monster didn't stop until he was on his back, and as he looked upwards, the sight of Mike grabbing something filled his eyes. Mike had grabbed the fallen spear, and it was now or never for the hero clad in overalls. Mike took a dash at Yardovich and with all his might stabbed the spear down, almost vaulting himself into the air.

Mike held to the spear for a good few moments in the monster's torso. He wanted nothing to give Yardovich the chance to rise up again. He took a glance down at his work however… The spear had gone right into it's chest like cavity, Yardovich's eyes wide open from shock and pain. Mike pushed away from the speared creature and smirked. Slowly, Yardovich began to break apart, arms, legs, and head, with all the pieces turning into coins as they did.

"Curse you…. We won't forget this! We'll be back! My master will avenge me…!" Yardovich's raspy voice echoes from the air suddenly.

"Master…?" Mike worded after.

Mike looked around now, seeing that the non mutated or trickster servants had covered themselves from sight or cowered in a corner. Mike had to give it to the ones who ducked to cover. They were standing up, holding steak knives, or cleavers, or something else sharp and weapon like. He smiled tiredly at them and gave a thumbs up. They smiled back, and returned his thumbs up, just glad to see the demon was gone. Mike looked around suddenly.

"Where's Alluna…..?" Mike asked, looking to the group.

"I saw her duck away into the wine cellar before those new guys showed up."

"Gotcha. You guys try and calm down, leave everything to me!" Mike saluted them all and dashed off.

Mike dashed past the paintings of the halls, the portraits of all the queens and princesses from times past. He skidded around a corner and took off to the basement door, the down the long steps to the second level, which was where the wine was kept for safe keeping and for aging. He could hear heavy breathing now and checked that it wasn't him first. Once he was sure there were two different breaths in the room, he called out,

"Hey! Hey Alluna!? It's Michael! Of the princess's royal guard!"

"S-Stay back! I-"

"Take it easy! I'm the good guy!" Mike put his hands up in front of him.

She would have kept on arguing but Mike had an easy way to prove he was the good guy. He took a calm breath and reached into his pocket. Alluna poked her head out to see that Mike was holding a key, the key to the weapons room, and it was sparkling and floating over his hand. The only two people who could ever get the key to work had been Starlette and Michael. Alluna watched in awe for a minute longer then sighed in relief. She stepped out fully and smiled shyly, now showing a much calmer side.

"I-I'm sorry…"

"Don't worry about it. Better you not trust me and find out its safe than, you know, just trust anyone and get hurt." Mike smiled.

It took a few hours, but at last, Mike had gone through the castle inside and out. The hero sighed and slumped over an outside wall as he rested after the long and unsteady search for any signs of danger. The princess and Belle had been let go much earlier and had taken to checking the weapons closet and valuables to make sure nothing was missing. All the maps, treasures, and valuables were still untouched, s their work had finished early. Mike yawned and slid down the wall onto his backside and drooped his head.

"Nothing…. Combed every last wall over and over…. He's gotta be gone."

Mike slowly looked up and saw a tray sitting front of him. He looked up and saw a cup of warm mint tea with a little white cake, even having a strawberry split in four sitting on the top. Holding it was Alluna, a new dress on and a warm smile on her lips. Mike slowly rose and smiled back to her.

"Master Michael. I and the other servants… Want to thank you. The guards here would have forgotten me… But you didn't… Thank you very much Master Michael."

"You don't have to call me master, nor should you use servants. The name's Mike. And you guys are workers, castle cooks, castle maids, but not servants." Mike chuckled lightly before grabbing the teat and cake.

"O-Oh! Well, I… Well, you're right I guess. I'm just used to the guards-"

"Hey. You work for princess Starlette. Not for the guards. I know Starlette would never call you guys servants." Mike took a sip of the tea and sighed a bit. "Whoa… Good tea!"


End file.
